Category: Enforcement and Inspection

As today’s workplace becomes more complex, regulation of that workplace increases. In this section, you’ll find the practical advice you need to understand exactly what OSHA, other federal agencies, and their state counterparts, require of you, and to comply in the ways that best satisfy both your and their needs. Look also for important court decisions, advice on how to handle enforcement actions, and news of upcoming changes in workplace health and safety law.

Free Special Report: What to Expect from an OSHA Inspection

Judge Vacates OSHA Fall Protection Citation

In a February 5 decision, an administrative law judge (ALJ) with the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission vacated an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) citation of a fall protection violation. Review Commission Judge Carol A. Baumerich concluded that the agency’s evidence failed to establish the cited employer’s noncompliance with OSHA’s construction industry fall […]

New York Elects Climate Change Superfund

New York Governor Kathy Hochul recently signed S.2129-B/A.3351-B into law. This legislation creates a Climate Change Adaptation Cost Recovery Program, which shifts the costs of climate adaptation to companies deemed responsible for contributing to climate change. Funding from the program will be used for “critical infrastructure investments, such as coastal protection and flood mitigation systems, […]

Most California COVID-19 Workplace Requirements Expire

Most of California’s COVID-19 Prevention Nonemergency Standards requirements ended this week, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) announced February 4. State COVID-19 reporting and recordkeeping requirements, however, remain in effect until February 3, 2026. The nonemergency standards took effect February 3, 2023, and remained in effect for two years. While the state […]

Agencies Ordered to Remove 10 Rules, Guidelines for Each New One

Under an Executive Order (E.O.) signed January 31 by President Donald Trump, all federal agencies must now identify 10 existing regulations or guidance documents to be repealed for each new rule, regulation, or guidance promulgated (E.O. 14192, 90 Fed. Reg. 9065). The E.O. also directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to ensure agencies […]

EPA Finalizes Interim Decision on Worker Protection for Ethylene Oxide Pollution

On January 14, 2025, the EPA announced it released the Interim Decision for Ethylene Oxide (EtO), which is a pesticide used on 50% of all sterilized medical devices in the United States and on approximately 30% of dried herbs and spices. “EtO is known to cause cancer, including lymphocytic leukemia, breast cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and […]

Are California’s Clean Vehicle Waivers in Jeopardy Under the Trump Administration?

In a letter dated January 13, 2025, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) withdrew its request for a Clean Air Act (CAA) waiver for its Advanced Clean Fleet Regulation. The original request sought a waiver to allow the state to enact rules to require all medium- and heavy-duty trucks operating within the Golden State to […]

Cal/OSHA Updates Fire Cleanup Guidelines

Employers performing cleanup work following the recent Los Angeles and Ventura County fires are subject to California’s workplace safety and health regulations, according to the state’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). The state workplace safety and health agency recently updated its guidelines for fire cleanup. The safety hazards of fire cleanup include demolition, […]

Cal/OSHA Raises Workplace Safety, Health Penalties

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) raised its maximum penalties for regulatory, general, willful, or repeat safety and health violations, the agency announced January 27. Cal/OSHA is a division of the state’s Department of Industrial Relations (DIR). The state workplace safety and health agency set the following maximum penalties: The agency is […]

Stormwater discharges, runoff

EPA Issues $50K Fine for NPDES Construction Permit Violations

In a news release, the EPA recently announced it fined The Cliff Corp. and Grupo Caribe, LLC, a total of $50,000 for violations of the Clean Water Act (CWA) relating to their ongoing construction project for an 86-villa development in the Borinquen Ward of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. “The companies failed to comply with a water […]

DOE Announces $850 Million in Funding Under Methane Emissions Reduction Program

The EPA and the Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced approximately $850 million for 43 projects selected for negotiation that will help small oil and gas operators, tribes, and other entities across the country to reduce, monitor, measure, and quantify methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. “The selected projects funded by the Inflation […]